HCB boss Knoll: “It’s no fun anymore”

Mr. Knoll, the white and red fans are longing for the next newcomers. How much longer do they have to be patient?

Dieter Knoll: “I assume that we will be able to announce enforcement this week. We are in the final stages of negotiations with several players, but in order for it to be concluded, several factors have to come together.”

“Transfers can also fail because of a pet” What factors do you mean?

“First and foremost it’s about money. Salaries have skyrocketed in the North American leagues AHL and ECHL. I don't know the reason for this, but I do know that I have to offer a player 15.000 to 20.000 euros more than an overseas club in order to lure him to Europe. The increase in salaries makes this a mammoth task. Then other seemingly irrelevant details come into play. Outsiders may find it hard to believe, but transfers sometimes fail because of a pet because a player suddenly remembers that it has to go to Bolzano, but we can't offer suitable accommodation here on an ad hoc basis."

Have you already had players on the hook who dropped out at short notice?

“This summer we were in a good spot with Chase Balisy and Mitch Callahan, who would have been absolute firecrackers. But then clubs rush forward, like the later buyers Straubing and Augsburg, who put a lot of money on the table. If someone offers these players up to 150.000 euros, we are powerless. These are just two examples of countless players about whom we put a lot of effort into obtaining expert opinions and reports, but who we then have to cross off our list.” “Ask my wife how many hours I spend on the phone late in the evening and at night.” How much do such circumstances wear on your nerves? “It's just frustrating, squad planning is no longer fun. Just ask my wife how many hours I spend on the phone late in the evenings and at night, making calls to North America and being in contact with my employees. We can hardly lure the legionnaires with money; it often takes a lot of persuasion. Another problem is the points rule. Our local players rise in the points ranking year after year, while in this country you can hardly find EBEL-suitable players born in 1996 and 1997. There is no point in simply hiring young talent and then leaving them to languish on the bench. We would just be shooting ourselves in the foot.” Ivan Tauferer (r.) is one of the few young South Tyroleans who can make the jump to the EBEL for Knoll.

So do Daniel Frank, Luca Frigo or Daniel Glira have to worry about their place in the team? “My great wish is to continue to retain deserving players like Frank, Frigo, Glira and Stefano Marchetti. They are like sons to me. The door is not yet completely closed for Viktor Schweitzer either. But their future at HCB depends on what is available on the transfer market. If we find young Italian-Canadians who won’t put a strain on the points quota, we will provide the next locals with contracts.” “Hargrove is one of the best wingers in the league” Only eleven players currently have one at the HCB. How do you rate these cracks? “The abilities of goalie Leland Irving are well known, as are those of Ivan Tauferer, Ivan Deluca, Marco Insam, Angelo Miceli and our captain Anton Bernard. Dan Catenacci has to improve significantly, but we want to give him another chance. Anthony Bardaro proved his scoring qualities in Asiago, Dennis Robertson and Kevin Spinozzi are reliable, physically strong defenders. Our king transfer so far is Colton Hargrove. I’m sure he’s one of the best wingers in the league.”

Which positions will HC Bozen add? “We are looking for reinforcements in all parts of the team. We have several top-class defenders, centers and wingers on the list, but an agreement depends on the factors mentioned above. We want to give the backup position to an Italian, we also need someone like that for defense and ideally for the center of attack. The fact is that time is of the essence more than ever. We want to go out on the ice with the entire squad on August 16th.”

Questions: Alexander Foppa

ICE Regular Season ICE	SP	TV	P
1. Klagenfurt	47	183:101	102
2. Fehervar	46	146:126	89
3. Salzburg	46	142:107	87
4. HCB South Tyrol	46	137:125	76
5. Linz	46	146:116	75
6. Villach	46	155:136	74
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HCB boss Knoll: “It’s no fun anymore”

HCB Südtirol Alperia traditionally completes its squad planning later than the competition, but this summer the Foxes fans are waiting even longer than usual for the big transfer hits. We asked sports director Dieter Knoll about the reasons.

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